Removing a deadbeat dad's visitation rights?

[patriot12]

What is the name of your state? AZ

How is it possible that the father can do whatever he wants with the visitation? What will it take to have his visitation rights removed? The father does not pay child support, is an alcoholic (he must take a breathalizer before he can pick them up from the supervisors), and had a massive seizure this past weekend just before he was about to take the kids to the store in his car (which I believe is from alcohol withdrawal). It seems he will stop drinking a day or two before the visitation to try and beat the system. My kids are in danger every time they get in the car with him. He never shows up for the court dates and the judge always seems to give him rights to the kids. Why am I always stuck following the rules and he can do whatever he pleases. I want to protect them, but the judge doesn't seem to care about his history of alcoholism, seizures and jail time for aggrevated DUI. Is it possible to have this deadbeat dad's rights removed? Any advice is appreciated. Thank You.

[CJane]

What is the name of your state? AZ

How is it possible that the father can do whatever he wants with the visitation? What will it take to have his visitation rights removed?

PROVEN extreme disinterest.
PROVEN abandonment.
PROVEN felony child abuse of one of the children.

The father does not pay child support,

Is he ordered to?

is an alcoholic (he must take a breathalizer before he can pick them up from the supervisors),

And so he must actually BE passing/taking those, right?

and had a massive seizure this past weekend just before he was about to take the kids to the store in his car (which I believe is from alcohol withdrawal).

What you believe is irrelevant.

It seems he will stop drinking a day or two before the visitation to try and beat the system.

That's not 'beating the system' that's 'following the court order'.

My kids are in danger every time they get in the car with him.

Well, driving/being a passenger is inherently dangerous.

He never shows up for the court dates and the judge always seems to give him rights to the kids.

That's because he has a constitutional right to be a bad parent.

Why am I always stuck following the rules and he can do whatever he pleases.

That's the 'benefit' of being the CP.

I want to protect them, but the judge doesn't seem to care about his history of alcoholism, seizures and jail time for aggrevated DUI. Is it possible to have this deadbeat dad's rights removed? Any advice is appreciated. Thank You.

In short... no.

[patriot12]

He has been ordered to pay child support of $320/mo and I have rarely seen a payment. He is approximately $8000 in arrears. Luckily the kids have one good parent. I realize visitation and child support are seperate issues. The LAW seems to turn a blind eye towards child support while giving him his constitutional right to be a bad parent. So apparently he has the best of both worlds and I have to continue to be the responible one. He has been passing his breathalizer test when he shows up. If he can't pass it, he will call and cancel the visit. Thank you for being so candid with your response. It is too bad that the judge doesn't care. I thought that the court was there to protect the best interest of the child?!

[LdiJ]

He has been ordered to pay child support of $320/mo and I have rarely seen a payment. He is approximately $8000 in arrears. Luckily the kids have one good parent. I realize visitation and child support are seperate issues. The LAW seems to turn a blind eye towards child support while giving him his constitutional right to be a bad parent. So apparently he has the best of both worlds and I have to continue to be the responible one. He has been passing his breathalizer test when he shows up. If he can't pass it, he will call and cancel the visit. Thank you for being so candid with your response. It is too bad that the judge doesn't care. I thought that the court was there to protect the best interest of the child?!

There may be things that can be done to better protect the children. The fact that he has seizures means that it truly is dangerous for him to be driving a car at all, let alone a car with children in it. Therefore you may be able to get it ordered that he is not allowed to drive with them.

If they are very young, its also possible that you could get it ordered that his visitation must be supervised (perhaps by his parents or another family member) to ensure that he does not drive with them and that there is another caregiver immediately available should he have a seizure.

[nextwife]

There may be things that can be done to better protect the children. The fact that he has seizures means that it truly is dangerous for him to be driving a car at all, let alone a car with children in it. Therefore you may be able to get it ordered that he is not allowed to drive with them.

Maybe. Depends upon the seizure cause. My dad had seizures from his brain tumor. Oh yeah. He never abused alchohol, so people can have seizures for other reasons. He controlled the seizures with the proper seizure medication, and learned to "sense" when one was coming on, and had sufficient time to pull over. People who can get seizures can safely drive.

You should not be making blanket statements that people who can get seizures should have their driver's license, or time with their children, taken away.

[CJane]

You should not be making blanket statements that people who can get seizures should have their driver's license, or time with their children, taken away.

That's not what she said.

She said "MAY" ... which simply means that it's worth looking into.

Also, OP may want to check her state statutes or consult with an attorney. Many states have laws stating that anyone w/a seizure disorder (more than 2 unprovoked seizures in 12 months is considered a disorder) must be seizure free for a certain amount of time before resuming driving.

[url]http://www.neurologychannel.com/seizures/precautions.shtml[/url]

Driving and Seizure Disorders
Although the laws vary somewhat from state to state, most states have rules regarding when seizure patients can legally resume driving. Typically, patients must have been seizure-free 6 months to a year. While physicians generally are not required to report patient seizures to their state motor vehicle departments, patients usually are expected to comply with the laws in their state

Dad's already picking the kids up from a supervisor and having to pass a breathylyzer... it wouldn't be a stretch, I don't think to have someone else provide transportation until his seizures are under control.